Lesson summary
Video transcript
In today’s English lesson, you are going to learn 25 Australian slang words. If you don’t already know, I am from Australia so I am the perfect person to teach you Australian slang words. But don’t worry. I’m not going to talk talk talk talk talk and explain the meanings of these words. You are going to learn the meanings of these words yourself through a fun quiz.
For each slang word, I am going to show you the word with an example sentence. Then you will see four possible meanings for each slang word like you see on the screen right now and I want you to choose the meaning that you think is correct. The four possible meanings will only be on the screen for five seconds so pause the video and click play when you are ready and then I will come back and tell you the answer. Are you ready? Let’s get it!
Number one. A cold one. Could you get me a cold one please? ‘A cold one’ means a beer. So if you say ‘Could you get me a cold one, please’ that means you’re asking for a beer.
Number two. Avo. Did you use the last avo? ‘Avo’ is a short way to say avocado. An avocado is a fruit that you can see right here.
Number three. Bail. What time did you bail last night? ‘Bail’ means to leave. So if someone says ‘What time did you bail’, that means ‘What time did you leave’.
Number four. Barbie. Let’s have a barbie tomorrow. ‘Barbie’ is a short way to say barbecue. So if someone asks you if you want to go to a barbie, they’re asking you ‘Do you want to go to a barbecue’ like you can see on the screen right now.
Number five. Bludger. He’s a bludger. A bludger is someone who is lazy and doesn’t work. So if you say someone’s a bludger, it means that they don’t have a job and they’re lazy and they’re probably not trying to get a job.
Number six. Booze bus. Don’t go down that street. There’s a booze bus there. A booze bus is a big police bus that has equipment to test drivers to see if they have been drinking. If you haven’t seen a booze bus before, what you see on the screen right now is a booze bus. It’s called a booze bus because booze is another slang word which means alcohol. So if someone says ‘Do you have any booze’, that means ‘Do you have any alcohol’.
Number seven. Bottle-o. Where’s the nearest bottle-o? ‘Bottle-o’ is short for bottle shop. A bottle shop is a liquor store, a place where you can buy alcohol, wine, spirits and beer. So if someone asks you ‘Where’s the nearest bottle-o’, that means they’re asking ‘Where’s the nearest alcohol shop’.
Number eight. Chock-a-block. The train is chock-a-block. Chock-a-block means completely full. So if someone says ‘The train’s chock-a-block’, that means there are many many many many people in the train and you probably can’t move in the train – it’s completely full.
Number nine. Chook. That’s such a cute little chook. A chook is a slang way to say ‘chicken’. So if someone says ‘That’s a cute little chook’, they are saying ‘That’s a cute little chicken’.
Number ten. Copper. Don’t drive too fast because there are a lot of coppers around. A copper is a police officer. It could be a policeman or a policewoman. So if someone says ‘There are a lot of coppers around’, that means there are a lot of police offers around this area.
Number eleven. Esky. Don’t forget to bring the esky to the party. An esky is a container that keeps things cold. It’s normally used to keep things like food and drink cold. What you see on the screen right now is an esky. ‘Esky’ comes from the word ‘Eskimo’. An Eskimo is a person who lives in a very very very cold place.
Number twelve. Flat out. I’ve been flat out at work this week. Flat out means very busy. So if someone says ‘I’ve been flat out at work this week’, that means they’ve been very busy at work. If someone asks you ‘How are you’, you can also use this phrase. You can say ‘I’ve been flat out’. That means ‘I’ve been very busy’.
Number thirteen. G’day. G’day mate. How are you? G’day is short for ‘good day’. It’s a greeting that Australians use. For example you can say ‘G’day mate. How are yuh?’ That’s a very Australian way to greet someone.
Number fourteen. Heaps. He’s got heaps of money. Heaps means a lot of or many. So if someone has heaps of money, that means they have a lot of money. Please note that you can use the word ‘heaps’ with countable nouns and uncountable nouns. For example, ‘He has heaps of chairs.’ ‘Chairs’ is a countable noun. You can also say ‘He’s got heaps of water.’ Water is an uncountable noun.
Number fifteen. Maccas. Let’s go to Maccas tonight. Maccas is short for McDonald’s. So if someone says they want to go to Maccas, that means they are talking about the very famous restaurant – McDonald’s.
Number sixteen. Mate. He’s my best mate. ‘Mate’ is an Australian slang word which just means friend. So if you say ‘He’s my mate’, that means ‘He’s my friend’.
Number seven. Mozzie. A mozzie bit me last night. A mozzie is a short way to say ‘mosquito’. So if a mozzie bit you, that means a mosquito bit you. If you don’t know what a mosquito is, it’s what you can see on the screen right now.
Number eighteen. Rack off. Rack off! I’m trying to study. ‘Rack off’ is a phrase that you can use to tell someone to go away. So if you say to someone ‘Rack off! I’m trying to study’, that means you want that person to go away. You don’t want them to stay here. But please note that this is not a very polite phrase so don’t use it unless you understand how to use it.
Number nineteen. Runners. I need to get some new runners today. ‘Runners’ is how Australians say sneakers or trainers. So if someone says they need to get new runners, that means they need to get new sneakers or trainers.
Number twenty. Servo. Stop at the servo on your way home, please. A ‘servo’ is short for a ‘service station’. A service station is just a different way to say a petrol station or in America they would say a gas station. So if someone wants to stop at a servo, that means they want to stop at a petrol station.
Number twenty-one. Sheila. Have you met the new sheila at work? ‘Sheila’ is a slang way to say ‘woman’. So if someones asks you ‘Have you met the new sheila at work’, that means ‘Have you met the new woman at work’.
Number twenty-two. Sick. The concert was sick. ‘Sick’ is a slang way to say ‘really good’. So if a concert was ‘sick’, that means the concert was really good.
Number twenty-three. Sunnies. You need to buy some new sunnies. ‘Sunnies’ is a short way to say ‘sunglasses’. So if someone wants to buy new sunnies, that means they want to buy new sunglasses.
Number twenty-four. Tea. What time do you have tea? ‘Tea’ means dinner. So if someone says ‘What time do you have tea’, that can mean ‘What time do you have dinner’. Also, you may hear some Australians say things like ‘Do you want to come over for tea tonight?’ That means ‘Do you want to come over for dinner?’
Number twenty-five. Yous. What are yous doing tonight? ‘You’s’ is plural for the word ‘you’. So if you say ‘What are yous doing tonight’, that means you’re talking talking to one, two or more than two people.
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